"recent news item of Juneteenth becoming a national holiday makes me wonder if my Granger family was related to
Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger
(the Union officer who took over Galveston) who announced the Enslaved persons of Texas were free as of two and a half years earlier. "
______
"Granger is best remembered for his part in the Battle of Chickamauga and the Battle of Chattanooga and for issuing General Order No. 3 on June 19, 1865, in Galveston, Texas,
further informing residents of, and enforcing, Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation which set all Confederate states' slaves free on January 1, 1863.
June 19 is now commemorated by the federal holiday of Juneteenth since 2021."
"During the Mexican–American War, Granger fought in Winfield Scott's army. He took part in the Siege of Veracruz, the Battle of Cerro Gordo, the Battle of Contreras, the Battle of Churubusco, and the Battle for Mexico City. Granger received two citations for gallantry and in May 1847 received his regular commission as a second lieutenant.
After the war, he served on the western frontier in Oregon and then Texas. In 1853 he became a first lieutenant."
***
"On June 19, 1865, in the city of Galveston, one of the first orders of business was to post Granger's General Order No. 3 which began with..."
"The people of Texas are informed that in accordance with a Proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free.
This involves an absolute equality of rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves,
and the connection therefore existing between them
becomes that between employer and hired laborer."
"Granger would do several other activities while being in command of Texas.
He would declare all laws passed by the Confederacy to be null,
ensured all Confederate soldiers were paroled, anyone "having public property" which included cotton be given to the US Army and all cotton that was privately owned be given to the Army as compensation.
He advised newly freed Blacks that they shouldn't congregate near towns and military posts without any employment and expecting welfare.
Instead he suggested they should remain on their plantations to sign labor agreements with their former owners until the Freedmen's Bureau could be established. Granger would serve in his role until August 6, 1865, "
"He was reassigned as colonel of the 15th Infantry Regiment, December 15, 1870 and commanded the District of New Mexico,
from April 29, 1871, to June 1, 1873.
Cochise who was the leader of the Chiricahuan tribe
and his people went to New Mexico where he contacted Granger to discuss peace terms,
which the two did in March 1872 at Cañada Alamosa. However, peace did not come out of this
as the Chiricahuas ended up going to the Dragoon Mountains when learning that all
Apaches were going to be sent to Fort Tularosa.
Peace was reached when Brigadier General Oliver O. Howard met him in October that year.
Granger went on sick leave of absence to October 31, 1875; and then was again in command of the District of New Mexico, October 31, 1875, to January 10, 1876.
Granger died in Santa Fe, New Mexico on January 10, 1876, where he was serving in command of the District of New Mexico."
____
'Members of the Shakers settled in the early town, but moved away, when they believed Sodus was becoming too worldly.
Sodus claims to be the birthplace of Arbor Day, a holiday established by the efforts of Sodus Center native Edward C. Delano."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gordon_Granger
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/154989368/george-granger
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